Rock Island daily Argus., 1887-10-22

listen to you. put / cannot let you pelieve so
horrible a thing
Raymond took the accusing letter from his
pocket and gave it to her. She tried to read
it. Then he said coldly:
"Have You read it?n
"Oh my poor boy, l, your motherln Then
she continued wildly: Il must tell you
There is no word of that true. 1t was a
mans vengeance, not woman's. That
man tried to make me love hinf'-
"Whoi LaroqueN
mo, the other, Luversan."
''You just pretended not to know himl"
II lied, did know him; he avOwed his
love; he was violent, brutal, capable of any
thing. and was afraid of him, but repulsed
him and he kept his word and revenged him
self, as You can see, since your father died
believing me guilty.
"Falsehoods! Falsehoodsi Do you think
my father would have believed so base an
accusation, an anonymous one, too, had he
not had other reasons2 NJ, he remembered,
and he was convinced and died without hav-
ing been able TO curse YOU"
"Raymond! what wild imagination has
taken possession of youi Return TO your
motherl You are frightful, with your hor-
rid stories"
Mother, father had written things which
show me that he had suspected
4lt is fatsel ! tell you, falsel How you
SANDER lin accusing your mother. Do You
think Of that Raymond"
"And that is not all mother Do YOU re-
member the day | showed you a photograph,
on the back of which were the dates of Roger
Laroque's arrest and condemnation, and
also the day of Larouettes murder and the
hourl You told me then a story which
might have accounted for all that, but that
discovered beyond doubt that that was
Roger Lsroque's photograph Oh, you were
well revenged. You pierced the photograph
even as you pierced the originals heart"
She knew now she was lost She had even
no strength left to frame new lies, and she
abandoned herself and threw herself upon
the floor, where she writhed in sohs and gasp
ing groans, but no tears came TO relieve her.
She crawled to his knees, and gasped: My
son, my son, do not curse ME. Pardon me.
You are on the threshold of life and know
nothing of its passions. l avow you were not
deceived. You know the truth. but ohl do
not curse me for it. 1t would be horrible
from you, whom | have so loved. Oh, Ray
mond, my son. see how | supplicate you. |
have repented so bitterly. II l could have
undone the past; but l am only a woman,
and could not deliver myself up to justice,
on account of my children One must not
demand of mothers more than they can do.
As soon as the crime was done l would will
lingly have died, but | loved you so well that
| hushed my conscience and hoped that by
an austere and devoted mothers life might
buy my pardon. But chastisement has over
taken Inc, and alas, by the hand of my dear
est child
"W hat would you have me dor she con-
tinued Raymond, soon-very soon-I shall
be no longer with You, for l feel my death
approaching"
And / only wish to die" said Raymond.
"And your arriage"
How can you speak of it now! How can
the daughter of Roger the Shameful mate
with the son of her who condemned him to
that unmerited shame?'
Another victim; another ones life upon
my conscience Oh, God, how manyl La
rouette, Henriette, Lucien Suzanne; Roger,
too, for he will die of grief for his childl"
cried she, wTinging her hands.
Add my name, too, mother, for without
her have no life"
"Oh, Raymond, kin me! Crush me like
some veneuous reptile. Kill me- kill meln